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Arrive CDG at 8:10a on Thursday, October 3. Help w/ planning first day.

I have read enough posts to know, arriving at 8:10a is not to be counted on! Hence our waffling on the plan for this first day. Our general itinerary is 3 nights in Burgundy on the front end of the trip and 6-7 nights in Paris after Burgundy w/ a day trip to Champagne and possibly one other day trip to Giverny or Versailles (have done once, but would do again) or I am open to hearing other a suggestions. We traveled to Paris in April 2012 and saw the most recommended places except Sacre Coeur/Monmarte.

We have two options:
1) After arriving CDG, take RER/Metro to a hotel in Paris, leave our carryon suitcases secured until check in. We have the option to stay at the hotel in St. Germain we are using for our stay after Burgundy or we can stay at a different hotel such as near Gare du Lyon or one we might consider for a future visit. We could leisurely take in one or two sights in Paris that we did not see in April 2012. I do not think a museum would be appropriate since we will be tired. What about a hop on/hop off bus? I am thinking Sacre Coeur/Monmarte is top on my list, but will that visit be an ok choice with travel hangover? I would have Lunch and Dinner planned, but nothing to expensive/extravagant and we would retire early to bed for an early train Friday to Dijon/Beaune.

2)Upon arrival at CDG buy a train ticket to Dijon/Beaune . My husband is opposed to buying this in advance since we have the unknown of exact arrival time of our flight. We have an option to do a 1:30p Discovery Tour w/ Authentica Tours on Friday from Dijon, but my husband does not feel comfortable about our belongings being stored in the minivan during the tour.
We could have lunch and dinner planned and retire early. We wanted to stay in Dijon for first night or two, but all Fodor/Frommer highly recommended lodging was booked. So we have reservations for nights one and two at Hotel de la Poste in Beaune and night three and at Hotel Wilson.

We have no car rental at the moment, but may do a one day only for Saturday and or Sunday. We do not want to drink and drive. So how does one manage to be so disciplined when driving around to all these wineries!!! I guess we can take turns being the DD. Seems like a tour is the best choice, though.

you'd be very unlucky not to make it there before nightfall, if your flight is timed to arrive at 8 am.

you don't make it clear what day you arrive - is it the friday? I wouldn't plan to do anything else on that day apart from travel, settle in, the odd glass [or two] of burgundy to get you in the mood - so no tours. but i;m sure that your hotel [or the tourist office] could arrange you a tour for Saturday.

Go right to Dijon. And go online starting 3 months out from your date of travel and get the cheap tickets. If you just buy them when you land you'll pay the highest price possible. Buy them for a train that leaves 3 hours after your stated time of arrival and you'll be fine. Planes aren't routinely late enough into CDG to cause the average train passenger, at least one who's planned ahead properly, to miss a train. You need to go online anyway to figure out exactly how you'll get from CDG to Dijon (it's not all direct trains, I don't think).

rhkkmk-Flying Delta from Atlanta. Several posters have shared late flight stories that caused them to miss a scheduled train trip.

annhig and StCirq-sorry for the luggage confusion. I put it in the wrong place. If we do option 1 staying Thursday night in Paris and traveling Friday to Dijon, we have a wine tour option at 1:30p departing from Dijon but we would have luggage to store since Friday night lodging is in Beaune.

<< Several posters have shared late flight stories that caused them to miss a scheduled train trip.>>

Then they probably failed to heed the conventional wisdom that one should schedule a train for no less than 3 hours after the stated landing time. I have taken hundreds of flights into CDG, almost every single one of them followed by a train ride, and have yet to miss a train except for the one time years ago when my traveling companion lost her ticket and we had to stand in line forever to get another.

FFF,
I would also go right on to Beaune on Thursday. Buy a ticket for a TGV leaving from Gare de Lyon to Dijon and then onto Beaune. The TGV you might make leaves at 11:58 and there is another in the early afternoon. I would check in at La Poste. Get settled and have an early dinner. On Friday take the train to Dijon for your Authentica tour. They pick up somewhat near the train station. Either take a train that gets you there in time to take the tour or go up to Dijon in the morning and wander around a bit before your 1:30 tour. Then its back on the train to Dijon for Friday evening.

FFF
As an update we are in Beaune now. From CDG we took a taxi to Gare de Lyon and then the TGV to Dijon, then a local train to Beaune. We looked at the CDG to Lyon option, but decided against it as it was a much longer trip. Either way you decide to go, you will enjoy Beaune it is a very nice town with many restaurants and sights we have just begun to explore.

We took your advice and have booked a 14:53 train from Gare de Lyon to Dijon and plan to buy the Dijon to Beuane tix in Dijon. We have probably allowed more time than necessary, but my husband says we can can exchange our ticket for an earlier train if that works out.

As much as I don't want to get back on the train the next day to Dijon, I think Authentica Discovery tour out of Dijon on Friday afternoon is our best option. A company called Vineatours is recommended by Hotel Le Cep and Hotel de la Poste, but the only reviews I read are from 2010 and are not good. They are two hour tours out of Beaune morning and afternoon at 52E.

There is something to be said about not worrying about the exact time a train leaves and trying to get tickets ahead of time to save some money, and this is less than a month from now so you can't get them 3 months in advance. Some of those runs aren't discounted that much in the morning, anywa.

Also, you don't waste time waiting around if you get in early (some of my Air France flights to Paris routinely arrive 30-45 minutes early) and there isn't much delay.

But yes, I have had flights arrive 1-2 hours late due to weather problems upon departure, also, anything can happen. If you want to save some money and possibly wait around a lot, you could get them for 3 hrs after arrival time, I agree that would be a good target point if you want to do that as you need to get out of the airport and to Gare de Lyon in Paris, I'd expect about 2 hours for that. You can't take a train from the airport to Dijon, unfortunately, at least not direct.

But I wouldn't push your husband about this if he just wants to wait until you get there, as I don't think it's worth it, either. But have a train schedule with you so you have an idea of departure times. It looks like the first option would be the one at 11:23 am for 27 euro, the regular fare is 55 euro. The one at 10:23 (which you might make if you got in early) isn't discounted now much anyway, it's 43 euro vs. regular 55 euro, but you wouldn't book that in advance given the time frame. If you miss the 11:23, there is one at 11:58. There are a couple others in there that are TERs and take a lot longer time (an hour extra in travel).

So you could save 28 euro each by buying nonrefundable tickets now for the 11:23. I'd probably do that, but some people do have trouble buying them online. One advantage is you could preprint them at home most likely and not waste time in line, also.

" You can't take a train from the airport to Dijon, unfortunately, at least not direct."
For those landing later in the afternoon, there is a direct train to Dijon but it leaves from CDG at 8pm (2nde class= 15€ Prems ticket to 50€ Plein Tarif 1h45 trip).

We took the 11h58 train from Gare de Lyon. Our in bound flight was over two hours late in arriving. It landed at 10AM but we got lucky in the immigration line as there was none, but you can't rely on that. Also since we were past "rush hour", (if there is any non rush hour on the roads to Paris), our trip to Gare de Lyon only took 45 minutes. But you can't rely on that either. If you can rebook for an earlier train once you get to GDL, that is a good plan. The 14h53 train or earlier seems very doable. Earlier as Christina suggests also might be also OK

If you find yourself at the Gare de Lyon with time to spare, you could buy your tickets from Dijon to Beaune there and have them in hand when you arrive in Dijon. In fact, you could also buy your tickets for the next day's trip Beaune-Dijon-Beaune. Just don't forget to stamp/composter those tickets before boarding the local trains.

If you're not planning another visit to Dijon, I would definitely plan to get there in the morning and take time to explore this beautiful city a little before your tour. You can pick up a map for the Owl Trail at the Tourist Office near the Dijon station. We stayed in Beaune, took the train to Dijon (~20-30 minutes), and walked much of the trail. I'd love to get back there someday to see some of the sites in more depth, but am so glad we saw what we saw during our brief visit.

Thanks Christine, MGG and WD for your input: we are presently booked 2nd class on the 14:53 from Gare de Lyon-Dijon. Should all go perfectly w/ flights, etc, we will exchange our tickets for one of the earlier trains...11:23 or 11:58.

Waterdog-Thanks for keeping me in the loop. I am booking a half day Authentica Discovery Tour in Dijon at 1:30p for Friday, which is our first full day in Burgundy. So we will go up early to Dijon, do the Owl Trail and eat lunch. We presently have a 7:30 reservation at Stephane Debord, but may see if we can change it to lunch instead.

How are you liking your hotel in Beaune? It is Le Cep, right? They have contacted me with an opening for a ERCru room at 238E but I presently have a room at Hotel de la Poste for 134E. Le Cep offers a smaller room called the Village room for 178E that is unavailable at the moment......but they were entirely booked a couple of weeks ago. My sense is Le Cep is a bit more centrally located than HDLP and off the top of my head, I think it is a 4 star and HDLP a 3 star.

FFF,
Yes we are at Le Cep. We are finding it to be a very nice hotel. It is located within the city ramparts while La Poste is on the ring road just outside the ramparts. In reality nothing in Beaune is far from either hotel. We walked everywhere so far, even the train station, (without luggage), today for our trip to Dijon. For our arrival we took a taxi to the hotel from the station.

I would hope you could make the 11:23 or 11:58, that is a good idea to get the kind of ticket you can exchange, I presume you did buy the right kind (the Loisir fare can be exchanged day of departure for a 10 euro fee). Of course, if you bought the regular kind at 55 euro you can exchange them, you just didn't save anything.

It is Le Cep, right? They have contacted me with an opening for a ERCru room at 238E but I presently have a room at Hotel de la Poste for 134E. Le Cep offers a smaller room called the Village room for 178E that is unavailable at the moment....>>

you can have a pretty nice meal for the difference between €238 and €134 - in fact a pretty nice meal EVERY NIGHT! as they are both convenient for the town, I know which I'd go for.

Christina-I hope we can easily make those earlier ones as well. In light of Waterdog's experience, surely we can. I will say, we are scared from our experience a few years back of a flight scheduled to arrive at 8 a in the morning into Venice and instead arriving at 5p......due to weather. He either bought the fully refundable or the Loisir. We will save nothing except time should we be pushed. I think my husband just wanted to "lock in" and mark another thing off the list.

annhig-No, I am not taking them up on the 238E room. But if the 178E came available and the location really was significantly different, I would probably change. But as HappyTrvlr has educated me, it sounds like I should stick w/ HDLP!

HappyTrvlr-can we easily walk from the train station to HDLP w/ our carryon suitcase?

I agree with staying with LaPoste. The two hotels are perhaps a five minute stroll apart and if you do not have to move hotels during your stay that is an added benefit. Regarding the train station, It is about a twenty minute walk with your carry-ons, but depending on how tired you are from the flight and the train etc, you may want to take a cab if they are available. I think it was an 8 euro fare. Perhaps an email to La Poste will make arrangements for you. As you walk toward town from the station, go to the ring road and take a left, keep walking around and you will find La Poste. By the way, two restaurants we liked were Ma Cuisine and Caveau des Arches.

annhig-No, I am not taking them up on the 238E room. But if the 178E came available and the location really was significantly different, I would probably change. But as HappyTrvlr has educated me, it sounds like I should stick w/ HDLP! >>

sounds like a good choice. I perhaps should have added that I'm a "max €100/night" person so even €134 per night at La Poste might have made me gulp.

waterdog-Thanks, I will email La Poste. How many nights is your stay in Burgundy? We are 3 nights in Beaune and 1 in Dijon. I hate to change hotels from Beaune to Dijon, but this is what the hubby wanted. Originally we were planning on only 3 nights in the area.

Did you have reservations for those two restaurants? I had Ma Cuisine on my list, but had not come across the other. Lunch or dinners?

Thanks so much for updates!!

annhig-When you get a late start planning, 100E spots are hard to find!

annhig-When you get a late start planning, 100E spots are hard to find!

fff - of course. that's the challenge! It's a bit late now, but Gites de France do B&B too. We found a great one in Paimpol a couple of years ago and even got french lessons from the other guests at the breakfast table thrown in for free.

I'm not being mean, it's just that it leaves more money for my main interest.....

annhig-I did not think you were being mean......I agree.....more money for wonderful food and wine!

Where have you stayed in Beaune or Dijon? Of course, staying with Coco at My Home in Dijon would have been perfect! But alas, she is very sought after and rightfully so. She has been a wonderful resource for me in my planning.

you guessed! no, we've never stayed there; i have a vague memory of driving past Beaune a very long time ago. no idea why we didn't stop particularly as I love red burgundy, not that I can afford it very often of course.

Yes we made reservations at restaurants before we left the US. I saw a number of people turned away at these places as they did not have a reservation. It is easy to do thru the restaurant website. In the case of Ma Cuisine, you have to send them an email. Another one to try is Le P'tit Paradis.

A couple of addition items. October 3 or thereabouts could be the beginning of the harvest. It has been delayed due to the cool and rainy late summer weather. From your dates, it looks like you will be in Beaune on the Saturday market day. This is a huge market that runs through several streets in town as well as the central market hall. Try not to miss it. It is usually over by around 1PM.

waterdog-Caveau des Arches has availability only Thursday and Saturday. Since you did what we are doing.....arrival from states and going straight to Beaune, would you recommend eating here our first evening as tired as we may be? The prices do not seem crazy expensive. I often read where people purposefully choose a lesser expensive dining experience for their first night after arriving from the states, but as I sit here fully rested, all I want is every meal I eat in France to be a "10."

waterdog-just saw your reference to the market. I def want to do that, so good to know the day and time span. Did you have some good lunches in Beaune or Dijon?

Also, do you have an opinion on staying all 4 nights in Beaune vs. what we are doing at the moment, Thurs-Sat nights in Beaune and Sun night in Dijon. Husband and I don't agree on this. Looks like lots of closed restaurants on Sun/Mon.

FFF,
For lunch we usually had a baguette sandwich or something similar except for the two tour days where we had lunch on the tour and on those days we sort of skipped dinner. As for our first meal here, we ate in Ma Cuisine. Most of the restaurants I mentioned have a menu of about 28 to 35 euros with wine extra. There are also entrees and plats you can order if you do want to order the whole menu plan. We did not choose retaurants based on their price, but by their reputation, but always chose the bistros or restaurants. There are a few Michelin starred restaurants in the area, but that was not what we were looking for.

FFF,
We were in Beaune for five nights which meant four real days in the area. We took a couple of tours, went to Dijon for a day, walked around Beaune a lot and we felt it was the right amount of time for us. After Beaune we took the TGV to Paris and spent a week. We just got back today.

FFF,
We stay in hotels when we are in Paris for stays less than a week. So for a week long stay we rent an apartment. It gives you more room and flexibility with meals and is good if you have guests or family members with you.
Last year we stayed in the Relais St. Germain for a shorter stay. We have been there before and like it.

Waterdog,
If I remember correctly, you took a taxi from CDG to Gare du Lyon trying to make a certain train after your flight was late arriving. What was your choice of transport returning to CDG and what time of day. We are debating the RER vs. Air France bus for our travel to and from CDG.

We took a taxi from our apartment. Depending on where you are in Paris, the Air France bus is very convenient although the RER is probably the fastest way to go. Speed to CDG was not a concern for our return to the airport as we stayed in a hotel at the airport for our last night in France. We had a 9:25 flight departure and wanted to be at the airport prior to the flight. The end date for the apartment did not match up with our return flight date so instead of staying one more night in Paris, we just went to CDG.